Friday, September 2, 2011

In light of the recent suit and counter suit between Page Productions and Food Network and the concern that Diners, Drive-ins and Dives might have been canceled, I reached out to David Page, president of Page Productions and creator of the show for his comment on the suits, settlement, and specifically Guy Fieri's role in either. And I asked David if he had a message for the fans of the show.

Here is his response, in his own words:

"Dora - you asked me if there was anything I wanted to say to the readers of your site. There is:"

Thank you all.Thank you for finding DDD.And for appreciating it.We worked very, very hard to make this show something special. Good enough was never good enough. And I'm proud of the work my very talented staff did in crafting this show to be so much more than average in every single way - especially in creating an onscreen image for Guy that presented him as someone viewers would see as knowledgeable and likable.

I've been in the business for 40 plus years. Making this show was a true labor of love and the creative high point of my career. Unfortunately, it's over. As often happens when TV creates an instant celebrity, that celebrity turns into someone else. Guy decided he no longer wanted to be produced or directed, no longer wanted my input or expertise to insure that his presentation and the show itself were as good as they could be and would continue growing and improving.

Guy clearly decided that what he needed was a different production company that would allow him to be in control. To that end, over the last year, he began making it extraordinarily difficult for us to produce DDD by canceling shoots, often at the last minute, failing to return phone calls and emails, refusing to schedule necessary voiceover sessions in a timely fashion to allow episodes to be completed on schedule, and simply being incredibly difficult for me to work with. Then, he went to the network and demanded they kick me off the show or he wouldn't perform. So they did.

Perhaps as Guy matures in his career he will come to realize that even Hemingway had an editor. And that actually listening to notes is something that can make a big difference in one's longevity. Along the way he may also learn it isn't good to get a reputation for plundering a production company's budget or for wanting to be surrounded only by sycophants, and he might even adopt more tolerant social views regarding minorities. Or maybe he won't.

As for those e-mails of mine that got printed in various newspapers? They weren't the reason the network did what Guy demanded - they were an excuse. You see, the network was so pleased with my work that they signed a new contract with me for 3 more seasons (12, 13, and 14) only three months before kicking me off the show. The e-mails came later - after I learned that Guy had been colluding with several disloyal staff members in his efforts to take the show away. Those emails were then sent to those staff members expressing my anger at their treachery. Context matters.

Fact is, people are people. They can disappoint you - sometimes to a remarkable degree. At the beginning, Guy and I were friends - close friends. I believed in him, and worked my butt off to help make him a star. To do that, it is essential to emphasize a performer's good qualities on TV and leave the rest on the floor. Frankly, the longer the show went on, the deeper the pile on the floor became. For Guy's sake, I hope he wakes up - soon - and recaptures his soul, his humanity, and his integrity.

But despite the disappointment of losing DDD (and the fun of producing it, and the income it generated for many employees who have now had to be laid off), it's been a real pleasure knowing that we have been able to entertain our viewers.

So, thank you again. And I look forward to attracting you all to our next project. Stay tuned.David

David, thank you for your message! And may I express my empathy for you in losing a show, a project, which so obviously meant so much to you.

Readers, Page Productions is currently working on new television projects with tons of potential. Visit them online at pageprod.com.

Also to be announced soon: several of the shirts that Guy Fieri wore on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives will go up for auction. More info on that as we receive it!

Wow, pretty unreal to hear what Guy is really like! Amazing what that production company kept him from showing on tv! Honestly, I think DDD could go on without him... any chef that knows the science and the methods and has a good personality would do. Hell, Bethenny Frankel would be excellent for it, except that she doesn't endorse that kind of high-calorie cooking! :) I'm sad there won't be any more episodes, but for now, I'll enjoy all the reruns that make my mouth water!

Guy Fieri is not the character described in the Page Productions letter. He is a hard working family man who also donates much of his time to charity functions, especially in his home town of Santa Rosa. Give him credit for staying out of the feud between Food Network and Page. Guy made the show what it is, so let’s appreciate the efforts he put forth while filming it and enjoy the many places he has visited!

Sorry Tom. Guy doesn't get extra credit for being hard working, a family man, nor for donating his time to charity. Tons of people do those things every day without the benefit of making millions of dollars.The question at hand is: are any of David's allegations untrue?

I believe that some of what David has said is likely true. I read with the knowledge that there are 2 sides to every coin. There is likely a bit of dirt on each side. In the end, it honestly has more to do with human nature and greed. Celebrity rises and falls with the same level of acceleration. It's fragile and needs grounding. They will both survive in what capacity who knows. I am and have always been a huge fan of this series. Dust off move forward and let's get back to work showing us awesome places to seek out and Eat!!

here are my two cents for what it is worth. i keep thinking that guy has alot of shows out there. has he caused problems with his other production companies? has he gotten them removed? i have not heard anything like that and i have met a few people who've met guy and i have only heard nice things. maybe the fact that this david character is posting his dirty laundry for all the entire world to read is part of the problem. maybe those emails and reports are part of the problem. this david is responding to other comments on other articles as well. he seems extremely confrontative and alot like a bully. i do not really think this david guy sounds like someone i would care to work with... maybe guy felt the same. this website is FANS of guy fieri, right? i find it classy that guy is not giving everyone an interview and telling all to any person with a blog or a pen.

Shannon, Guy knows how to be nice in public. It's the behind-the-scenes stuff that you don't hear about. The first time I met Guy, he was an ass. The second time I met Guy, he was an even bigger ass; insulted me right to my face. After the third time I met Guy, he did everything he could to get me fired from my job.

That's why you don't hear complaints from other production companies. No one wants to speak out for fear of losing their jobs. And Guy knows that. He's smarter, and way more ruthless, than he appears on TV.

Most of the people who work in television in Minneapolis know that working for Page is often the worst experience of their careers. Everyone who works with Guy thinks the opposite. Page got canned because his outrageous behavior could not be tolerated by anyone who had to deal with him including the network and his employees.

I wonder which soft and disgruntled former Page staffer is hiding behind that last anonymous post. My sources told me that the majority of those who jumped ship had very little television experience before working for Page and should be thanking him for giving them an opportunity to work on a hit show.

David's allegations are, from what I saw, absolutely true. Towards the end of last year DDD filmed an episode at my friend's bar / restaurant. In fact, our segment was put on the shelf and, because of the aforementioned lawsuit, it JUST aired.During the two days DDD was here, the production staff couldn't have been more patient, understanding or helpful. They put in extremely long hours, and were saddled with the exhausting chore of dealing with us, a bunch of amateurs who'd never been in front of a camera. They were never short with anyone, and they never let on that we were driving them crazy, although I'm pretty sure we were.Guy, on the other hand, was in and out relatively quickly. Once he was ready to be "Guy", he filmed his parts with the chefs in the kitchen, then spray painted (yeah, spray painted) a big stencil of his face near the door, and left. His camaro was even trailered in, I know, weak...right? He spent most of his time with the friends he'd brought, and he seemed perfectly happy just to hang out with them. The bar has its own small line of tanks and shirts, that quickly become sought after limited editions. The owner gave one to Guy, and don't think this isn't true, but, as he barely gave it a glance, he walked away. He couldn't even be bothered to say thank you. The second day, the camera crew and production staff were back to film the lion's share of the footage. They were obviously much more relaxed, and this little fact only helped our group of amateurs feel a bit more at ease as well. After filming was over they even stayed into the evening to have a couple of cocktails with us.I wish them all, Guy included, nothing but the best, and want to thank them for all of their help and understanding. We all loved the experience, it's something we won't soon forget...and we really did have a lot of fun.

Bonnie, I gave a token momento to Guy once, too at a Triple D shoot. He turned to the camera crew, pointed his thumb my way and said, "See what I have to put up with?"Yeah. They laughed right along with him.Still love the show though, and I think that's what matters?

David Page is an egotistical maniac. I worked with him for a long time before DDD and completely understand why he was taken of this show. I've never met Guy but from others in the industry I hear he is great to work with.

Anon, even so. Whenever I need to make a change (work, personal, whatever), I talk to the person, calmly present the reasons why I need the change, and ask for the change. And, I tell the person what will happen if the change doesn't occur.Food Network and Guy didn't do that. They were totally passive-aggressive in their dealing with Page, thereby making themselves just as bad. And THAT's what's wrong with the whole picture; that's why it all went down so dirty.And it's not like Guy doesn't understand business management, right? So, I still hold him and FN accountable for being scoundrels about it all.